Lotus Bowral — Restaurant in Bowral

I have never been so disappointed in a dinning experience, especially when it is classed as one of the finest restaurants in Bowral. We had a booking for 6:30pm, at 8:30pm we had no dinner). We were taken to our table and told there was not enough wine menus and that she would bring us one(the restaurant was at less then 50% capacity in the dinning area). We never ended up receiving a wine or cocktails menu in the night of service , so we only got waterm ENTREE: Lobster and prawn dumplings Pork and chive dumplings Signature spring rolls with the king brown mushroom(we were informed that it comes as a single small spring roll and asked if we would like more. Which I said 1 is plenty as my wife isn’t big on mushrooms. The menu should specify how many spring rolls and how many dumplings come with each serving. MAIN: Kung pao chicken with peanuts and dried chilli Steamed snow peas, broccolini, baby corn & garlic. Lotus wok fried rice, duck, coriander, mustard seeds. The dumplings arrived at 7pm. These were delicious. By 7:30 the Signature spring rolls still hadn’t arrived and the waiter finally came to tell us they had run out of them. We had noticed in the night that the staff and some patrons were having some trouble & errors or frustrations, it was a very long and frustrating wait because from just after 7pm when the entrees were cleared from the table there was no check on drinks or a check in to notice our food hadn’t arrived, check how the entrees were or how we were. Until 8pm when a staff member asked us and 3 other tables if we had received our mains which we had not nor any of the other 3 tables, he was going to check the issue or matter. At 8:15pm another patron come over, asking if we were okay as they noticed we were looking around and had been waiting. She informed us that they had struggled to get their meals and had to harass the staff to get any meals, I thanked her and went straight to ask the manager what was going on and where are the mains especially after the staff member never coming back but walking around serving. Upon seeing the managers concern, overwhelmed & struggling to get infront of a bad night’s service, I wanted to be kind and patient with what was clearly a terrible night’s service all round. I asked where and what might have happened to our meals due to waiting now 1.5hrs for mains and if they were not ready in 5 -10mins we would be leaving because being a small town not much would be open after 8:30pm. she went to the kitchen to find out our meals had gone to another table and the meals would not be ready anytime soon. We asked for local recommendations and told to go to a pub or pizza which had closed early or only places open had sold out nothing left. The next option was MacDonald’s which would be a drive to the next town. We found Sweet Retro Gelato where 3 teenage girls out serviced and managed a supposed fine dinning establishment in Bowral. The staff from the moment of arrival appeared to be very overwhelmed, untrained, lacking any management and especially for a fine dining establishment, it is the simple things like not receiving a drinks menu, the staff not paying attention to how long their customers were waiting and then addressing the situation and rectifying it in a timely manner. We ended up with no dinner at all, and after driving around town looking for somewhere open, at 9:30pm we ended up eating ice-cream & doughnuts to try and fill a fine dinning experience that never happened. We enjoyed the dumplings, but that is definitely not enough to complete our night

(We were compensated on the entrees but that definitely doesn't help the experience. Especially when the rest of the night was spent searching, calling for local food or asking pubs cause they...

A PERFECT SPOT FOR A REGULAR TREAT OR SPECIAL OCCASION. tl;dr: A beautiful upscale yet cosy venue featuring fine dining asian cuisine and artisinal drinks that are fairly priced. $35 - $50 pp without drinks reservations recommended to avoid disappointment

Lotus features a beautiful venue overlooking the golf greens and a modern and spacious dining area. It adjoins harveys bar which serves an excellent space to relax and unwind before your reservation and retire to after an amazing meal. A combination of mid century jazz vibes and rustic woodfires, it is a perfect secluded space that plays host to local artists in residence every wednesday.

Lotus brings to the southern highlands something that is unique with its fine dining spin on a traditional asian repetoire. As a long time resident it excites me to be able to work my way through the menu and I have yet to order any that is anything but amazing. However, there are some dishes that just stand out as something exceptional and I would highly recommend talking to the staff to explore the menu. Josie and the Lotus wait team are as knowledgable as they are hospitable and are always happy to assist.

I personally find the sezchaun and chilli spiced dishes (wontons and braised ribs being the goto) paired with lotus's own rice brewed craft beer are quickly becoming a staple to look forward to at the end of the week.

Understand that eating here is as much an experience as a good feed, bringing braising, steaming, tempura and exotic (for the highlands) spices and sauces. All the meals give the impression of deep consideration of technique and flavor by skilled chefs and the ability to present these dishes consistently is outstanding. There are more muted dishes equally as considered so there is something for everyone even those less adventurous.

I cannot recommend Lotus enough and I am quickly running out of people to drag with me so i have an excuse to go. As a recent development i look forward to see how...

We first visited the hotel in Bowral from Wollongong to attend a special event for the Wollongong Private Hospital dinner and it was during this stay that we met Khush, who was managing the event. Despite running the entire evening alone, his attention to detail, and seamless handling of everything really stood out. His dedication was evident, and we were so impressed that we exchanged contact details after the event.

Since then, we’ve developed a great friendship with him , and every time we visit our daughter in Bowral, we make it a point to stop by. A few weeks ago, Kush introduced us to The Lotus restaurant which is new in town and to the hotel itself, and we’ve been making the trip from Wollongong regularly ever since. The menu is outstanding, offering a wide variety of dishes included all the meat options especially the dumpling selection. Kush recommended the wontons and the soft shell crab which were exceptional. The lobster and prawn dumplings were another highlight. The wine recommended to us were equally fantastic, with a broad yet beautifully curated list that never disappoints.

Beyond the food, the ambiance at the Lotus is remarkable. During lunchtime, the views of the golf course are stunning, making for a serene and relaxing meal. And for dinner, the full moon shining through the windows creates a magical atmosphere, especially when seated at one of the window tables.

We’re looking forward to coming back soon for dinner with our daughter and family. Every visit to the Park Proxi and the Lotus is worth the trip from Wollongong, and we can’t wait to enjoy another...